This is the blog of Eco-Vista | Brent Stephenson, a wildlife photographer, guide, and birder based near Napier, New Zealand. His wildlife, landscape, and people images can be discovered at his portfolio website.

More on Henderson Island...

It was strange to be there last year and see kiore (Pacific rats) fighting with the large land (hermit) crabs over broken coconuts! The island is such a special place with such a high level of endemism it will be great to see the removal of these introduced rats. Nearby Ducie Island was probably the most incredible seabird island I have visited, thanks largely to the removal of rats in the 1990s.

Kiore and a large land crab fighting over a broken coconut

The beautiful endemic Stephen's lorikeet

Looking out over the beach from the raised part of the island

The Henderson race of the Pitcairn reed warbler

The stunning endemic Henderson fruit dove

An endemic seabird, the Henderson petrel at sea near Henderson Island

So, good luck to the RSPB with the eradication, they do have advice from the World leading kiwis on this one, so lets hope they can get the rats and minimise the impact on other species.